Seton Hall 79, Providence 47: Seton Hall gave its fading NCAA Tournament hopes a much-needed boost, cruising past Providence in the opening round of the Big East tournament at Madison Square Garden in New York.

The Pirates (20-11, 8-10 Big East), who had put themselves on the NCAA bubble by losing three of four to close the regular season, fell into an early 9-0 hole on Tuesday before taking the lead for good with an extended 23-3 blitz. Brandon Mobley scored seven of his career-high 16 points during the run to lead the way for Seton Hall.

Herb Pope also scored 16 points and Jordan Theodore added 13 points and 13 assists to pace the Pirates, who will face seventh-seeded Louisville on Wednesday. Seton Hall put away the Friars (15-17, 4-14) by making 13 of their first 18 shots in the second half.

Freshman LaDontae Henton finished with 14 points and seven rebounds to lead the 15th-seeded Friars. Providence struggled mightily after its hot start, hitting just 15 of 56 (27 percent) from the floor overall and missing 17 of 21 3-point attempts.

GAME NOTEBOOK: With the win, Seton Hall evened its all-time series with Providence at 45 games apiece ... The Pirates have won seven of the last eight meetings ... Wednesday's second-round game will mark the first time that Seton Hall and Louisville have faced off in the Big East tournament ... The Cardinals lead their all-time series with the Pirates, 10-5.